Don’t cut it. That it is not cut and blended well is quite an achievement when one begins in the art of gazpachuelo. Anyone who has tried it for the first time knows this. A good fish broth and a good homemade mayonnaise are not enough, the art of this dish lies in the subtlety of the moment in which these two main ingredients meet; in the eye that knows wait for the exact temperature at which to dilute the mayonnaise in the broth. Temperance is the secret of this iconic Malaga dish: neither hot nor cold.
The combinations that gazpachuelo accepts are almost unlimited: from the traditional ones with potatoes, rice and clams to the successful fusions with foreign cuisines. But, above all, gazpachuelo is a marine heritage broth, a soup in which the humility and ingenuity of the kitchen used in the fishermen’s neighborhoods of the capital of Malaga come together. With some trash from the daily catch, the broth was made, to which potatoes, rice or even stale bread were added.
This soup of poor originfattened with mayonnaise to be served as a second course, began to become more sophisticated when it became part of the restaurant menus, which added more noble ingredients such as prawns, monkfish or hake, without forgetting the traditional touch of amontillado wines that turn into the Viña AB soupin honor of the González Byass winery, which transfers its elegance and structure to the soup.
Despite its popularity in homes, gazpachuelo is not a dish that is easily found on the menus of all restaurants in the capital. It is a dish that you have to look for and in many establishments it is on request. From the avant-garde of fusion to the most traditional recipes, it is a warm soup that is made at the moment and you have to know where to order it. Here are some examples of the Malaga capital:
The Cathedral Corner
By the eating house Emilia Luque Politicians, businessmen, journalists, artists and university professors pass by every day to try the dish of the day, where gazpachuelo is never lacking. With a classic recipe based on potato, rice, clams, prawns and pink, El Rincón de la Catedral proudly serves its emblem dish, for some the most authentic in the city. Perhaps because in memory it evokes the flavors of childhood or perhaps because of the family treatment of the place, Emilia’s gazpachuelo deserves a visit to discover the original flavor of this popular dish.
C/ Canon, 7, 29015 Malaga (952 60 05 18)
Marian Meson
An indisputable reference in the center of the Malaga capital, Mesón Mariano’s menu speaks of quality products and gastronomic honesty. This is where their gazpachuelo is located. Served as a second course, the luck of Mariano’s gazpachuelo is in its mayonnaise, which gives the broth creaminess and a remarkable lemon flavor. If we add to this the variety of fresh seafood and fish that it incorporates, each spoonful becomes ‘a wedding gazpachuelo’, as Mariano points out, alluding to the abundance of ingredients in the soup. The nod to the traditional recipe is provided by an egg that coagulates in the broth and enhances the final flavor.
C/ Granados, 2, 29008 Malaga (952 21 18 99)
nerve
From the fourth generation of hoteliers, the Nerva bar has revised the traditional recipe that made them famous in other times. Instead of the white color of the classic broth, the soup served in this restaurant is pink thanks to the use of king prawns as the base ingredient for both the fumé and the mayonnaise. With only the potato wedges and the prawns half cooked, the result is as colorful as it is succulent. As a signature of the house, they offer a glass of amontillado being poured into the broth to turn traditional gazpachuelo into Viña AB soup.
C/ Christ of the Epidemic, 55, 29013 Malaga (952 26 79 49)
Soka
The young chef from Malaga William Torralbo He accurately manages the stoves of the Soca restaurant, a space led by Rui Junior, one of the most outstanding sushi chefs in the city. From the combination of these two gastronomic cultures, Soca’s menu offers a gazpachuelo that respects the fish broth and mayonnaise as the common denominator, but that goes into a daring journey through products of Japanese gastronomy. Raw shrimps from Marbella, sea bream wrapped in kombu seaweed and macerated for 24 hours, a black garlic and miso mayonnaise, together with all the yuzu roe and ponzu gel make this gazpachuelo a delicate and innovative dish.
C/ Carreteria, 54, 29008 Malaga (951 53 26 34)
Sake Izakaya
With a fun and very personal market cuisine, Sake Izakaya is becoming more solid every day on the city’s gastronomic route. His alma mater and owner, chef from Malaga Juan López, landed back in Malaga after a few years in Japan, where he had already tried to merge both culinary cultures. The particularity of his gazpachuelo is the reflection of his restless character in the technique and his search for the quality of the products. Taking as reference the nabemono, this Japanese gazpachuelo is served with coral mayonnaise based on shrimp confit, a broth of monkfish mounted with miso and shitake mushrooms, to which it also adds shrimp. This warm soup can be found on the menu every Thursday.
C/ San Juan de Letrán, 29012 Málaga (611 45 04 45)
Cover image | Meson Mariano
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